


Something Just Like This

by Rhapsody0607



Category: Dungeons & Dragons (Roleplaying Game), Queertical Role
Genre: F/F, F/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-08-11
Updated: 2018-08-11
Packaged: 2019-06-26 00:37:54
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 4
Words: 15,651
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15652194
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Rhapsody0607/pseuds/Rhapsody0607
Summary: Ryleigh stands at the shore as the tide comes in, looking up at the stars. When she was a child and felt small or lonely, she’d look up at the stars and wonder if there was life up there. Turns out she was looking in the wrong direction. Ryleigh’s gaze falls from the heavens above to the vast ocean below - and she scowls at it. It wasn’t the ocean’s fault, but when alien life entered the world it didn’t come from above, it came from the deep beneath.Pacific Rim AUSafika Muyar IS Rukiya Moonstream, but no one knew that when I originally wrote this lol





	1. Chapter 1

Ryleigh stands at the shore as the tide comes in, looking up at the stars. When she was a child and felt small or lonely, she’d look up at the stars and wonder if there was life up there. Turns out she was looking in the wrong direction. Ryleigh’s gaze falls from the heavens above to the vast ocean below - and she scowls at it. It wasn’t the ocean’s fault, but when alien life entered the world it didn’t come from above, it came from the deep beneath.

 

She was 13 when the first Kaiju made land at Thista in Ascus. She watched in horror as the creature destroyed the city, tens of thousands lives lost, 5 days of Ascus pulling all of its military resources to stop the monster, which they did. The country mourned its dead, memorialized the attack, and moved on. And then, just six months later, the second attack hit Vecbony in Vatru. Then the third one hit Serinar, Ardabeh. Then the fourth. And the world learned that this wasn’t going to stop. That this was just the beginning. The world came together, pooling it’s resources and throwing aside old rivalries for the sake of the greater good. To fight monsters, they created monsters, and the Jaeger program was born.

 

Eight Shatterdomes were set up around the world. They were headquarters and factories for the operation, repair, and maintenance of Jaegers. All operations, including Ranger training and Kaiju research were carried out within their respective Shatterdome.

\--- 

Ryleigh and her older brother, Avery, argued continuously about the Jaeger program. She wanted to join.

 

“You’re too young, Ry. And think of all the people the Jaegers hurt when they’re in the city. They cause nearly as much damage as the Kaiju,” Avery said, concern spreading across his features.

 

Ryleigh sighed with exasperation; at 15 she knows she can’t become a Ranger. “I know I’m not old enough yet. But it’s like a game of chess, Avery.  They can’t save everyone, some sacrifices have to be made.”

 

Ryleigh watched as her brother’s eyes narrowed and his jaw clenched; she struck a nerve. “Jaeger pilots are irresponsible and rash. They seek out fame and glory. They don’t care what happens to the rest of us, as long as they kill Kaiju and sell merchandise.”

 

It was partially true. Jaeger pilots were their own kind of celebrity. There were toys of the Jaeger suits, of Kaiju, of the pilots themselves. Merchandise funded new Kaiju research _and_ new technology for the Jaegers. Children wore apparel of their favorite Jaeger, adults argued about the necessity of the program, and the world’s politicians pumped more money into Kaiju research.

 

She’d convince him one day that they weren’t all in it for fame, riches, or to become legends. She remembered how helpless she felt the day the first Kaiju attacked and she never wanted to feel like that again. Ryleigh knew there were things you can’t fight in this world, acts of the gods. No one fights the Everstorm, you have to avoid it or get out of its way. But when you’re in a Jaeger, suddenly, you can fight the Everstorm. And you can win.

\---

A few years passed and a new generation of Jaeger was born. The Kaiju got bigger and more powerful.

 

Kaiju fell.

Jaegers triumphed.

 

Jaegers fell.

Kaiju triumphed.

Kaiju fell.

_“When does this end?”_ demanded a politician on-screen. _“When do we defeat the Kaiju?”_

There was talk of a wall being built.

_“A wall.”_  Kafar Frostbeard shook his head. Beside him, Gunnloda, his cousin, was staring grimly at the cameras. The two of them looked every inch the heroes that they were, wearing their formal uniforms, faces hard, jaws stern. _“You mark my words: no wall will stop a Kaiju. It will smash through or climb right over.”_

The Marshals of the Shatterdomes, the scientists and engineers that served in the Shatterdomes, and every Ranger who piloted the Jaegers were all staunchly against any kind of wall.

\---

In a world filled with chaos, Ryleigh found solace in running. She took comfort in its steady rhythm. Left foot, right foot. Breathe in, breathe out. One two one two one two one two. She ran for solitude and calm. She ran and thought about saving people.

 

She learned martial arts and she was good at it - even great. She competed in underground fighting rings to make extra money. One evening, after a fight, a tall, muscled woman approached Ryleigh in the makeshift locker room. She introduced herself as Olivia Rorsk, with the Antemon Defense Corps. Ryleigh’s eyes grew wide as she shook Olivia’s hand. This woman _might_ be a Jaeger pilot.  

 

“I’ve been watching you.” Olivia said.

 

Ryleigh’s brow furrowed.

 

“You fight with an emphasis on powerful counter-attacks that can leave your opponent devastated, but sometimes you’re reckless. You don’t hold back your feelings, your passion, your anger. It makes you remarkable, but it also makes you dangerous. It’s why you lost tonight. You let him get the best of you because you didn’t control your feelings,” Olivia stated plainly.

 

“You don’t know anything about me.” Ryleigh tilted her chin up and clenched her jaw in defiance, both movements caused her pain but she refused to show it.

 

“That man continued to hit you when you fell unconscious. I’d wager you have 2 broken ribs from his kick, that cut above your eye needs 8 to 10 stitches, and you fractured your wrist in the fall. I also know you weren’t scared. I could see it in your eyes as you went down - you were angry.”

 

Ryleigh stared at her, suddenly troubled by this woman’s perceptiveness, and whispered, “I probably should have been scared.” But she wasn’t. Physical pain was something she could deal with; it helped her forget. That’s why she loved to run. Ryleigh collected herself from her thoughts and bluntly asked, “Can I help you with something?”

 

“As a matter of fact,” Olivia said, “you can. I want you to be a Ranger candidate.”

 

Ryleigh’s mouth hung open and her eyebrows threatened to disappear into her hairline. This stranger wanted to recruit her for the Ranger program, to be a possible Jaeger pilot.

 

Olivia smiled at Ryleigh’s reaction. “You are resourceful. Efficient. A quick thinker. Your reflexes are incredible. You’re a little impulsive, but that can be trained out of you.”

 

“I…” Ryleigh started but is at a loss for words. She opened and closed her mouth a few times before finally saying, “I have one condition.”

 

“I’m sure it’s doable,” Olivia responded with a grin.

\---

“AVERY!” Ryleigh burst through the door and winced in pain as she did, damn broken ribs.

 

He came running to her and caught her as she started to fall. “Ry, what the hell? You disappeared after the match. I couldn’t-”

 

“They want me, Avery! A woman named Olivia just offered me a spot at the Jaeger Academy.” Ryleigh’s smile was huge. “She said you can come too. Can you believe it? Nobodies from nowhere with nothing. She said she’d been watching me for a few weeks. Come with me? Avery, we could save the world as Jaeger pilots, we can make an actual difference.”

 

He wasn’t ever going to let Ryleigh go alone - she was his responsibility and had been since they were kids. He had no reason to stay here anyway, not since Clemency….

 

“Alright, Ry. Under one condition.”

 

“Name it.” Her face lit up.

 

“I call the shots. You listen to me if things go bad. I know you’re not one to retreat but sometimes you have to lose the battle to win the war. I love you and I can’t lose you too. So we do this together, we listen to one another - deal?”

 

Avery had never lead them into harm’s way. “It’s a promise,” she responded.

\---

It was hard. Granted, the academy _had_ to be hard if they were to become qualified Jaeger pilots. Not all of them would be assigned to a Jaeger. Some would be, but the others would join various departments of the Antemon Defence Corps – Jaeger Tech, Kaiju Science, Engineering, and anything else that makes the Shatterdome run. But they were all there for that glimmering hope that one day they might pilot a Jaeger and be given the title of Ranger.

 

Each day brought a new challenge, a test, an intense exercise that is completed under the most stressful of conditions. They wrote essays with hardened veterans shouting and bawling in their ears. They completed quizzes while running laps around the track, shouting out answers hoarsely and breathlessly. They learned everything there is to know about Jaegers and the history of the program. They were woken at 2am, deprived of sleep for days, and made to complete gruelling sessions of exercise before being forced to sit another test about the Kaiju.

 

Ryleigh didn’t make friends easily, but Avery did. He knew nearly everyone’s name and was liked by most. Ryleigh made exactly one friend during training, a dark skinned half-elf woman named Safika. She was from Vyon, the country north of Ascus. They competed with each other in everything.

 

Ryleigh and Safika sparred together in the Kwoon Combat Room, and what began as a sparring session became an intricate dance of spinning staffs and laughter. In each other, they found an opponent who could match them. The instructors watched, wrote down notes on their clipboards, and nodded approvingly.

 

She and Safika sat together during class, at meal times, and they trained together. And it started to happen instinctively - they sought each other out subconsciously, without meaning to. It shocked, and mildly scared Ryleigh once she realized their compatibility.

 

Even during training Ryleigh ran. Avery ran with her most of the time. He didn’t like it, but he knew she took comfort in the steady rhythm of running, and it helped that they were perfectly attuned. Then Safika started to join her on runs and, to Ryleigh’s surprise, they easily found a steady rhythm together. Left foot, right foot. Breathe in, breathe out. One two one two one two one two. They ran side by side, in near perfect synchronisation. It happened instinctively.

 

Jaeger pilots were warned about R.A.B.I.T.s - Random Access Brain Impulse Triggers - during training, memories from the pilot’s past. When they first entered the drift with someone, they were exposed to their memories and those of their partner. Once the pilots fully synced together, risk of R.A.B.I.T.s would disappear. The danger was in “chasing the R.A.B.I.T.” because if a pilot engaged or “chased” the memory they could mistake it for reality. Chasing R.A.B.I.T.s would desynchronize the pilots and throw them out of the drift. In rare cases, the Jaeger could instead be powered by a particularly strong emotional reaction to R.A.B.I.T.s.

 

Drift Compatibility, technically, can be found with anyone. It only requires two things: an affinity for one another and a certain lack of shyness, because you’re sharing a single headspace.

 

Ryleigh drifted with other students at the academy – it’s a necessary thing. She was quite compatible with Safika, and not so compatible with the others. But Ryleigh and Avery were more compatible with each other than with anyone else. That’s to be expected because they’re siblings. The instructors said that they’d easily be able to pilot a Jaeger together.

 

During training they learned about the Kaiju, the enemies that they would one day face. They learned to fight. They grappled in waist-high pools of freezing water. They fought in the Kwoon Combat Room, sparring with staffs and wooden swords. Olivia watched them train and taught the recruits the 52 positions of Jaeger Bushido.

 

The weaker students were dropped from the program and only the strong remained. They drove themselves to be absolutely perfect and nothing less because people were depending on them. That brought a sort of camaraderie. Most were there for the same reason: to protect people.

 

Soon, twenty-four weeks had flown by. They graduated with the other candidates who had made it this far, and they all joined the ranks of the Antemon Defence Corps. Those assigned to Jaegers would become Rangers.

 ---

Ryleigh and Avery were assigned to the Jaeger named Guardian Ace. Their drivesuits were black with a thick vertical stripe of purple lined with grey. The surface of the polycarbonate armor was smooth and unmarked by scratches and wear. Safika was partnered with a man named Rinan and their Jaeger named Armored Light. Their drivesuits were white with thin stripes of cobalt blue.

 

Ryleigh was awestruck the first time she looked up at Guardian Ace. Ryleigh pressed a hand to the freshly painted steel and murmured, “We’re going to keep watch and save lives.”

 

“We look like proper Jaeger pilots now,” Safika’s voice sounded from behind Ryleigh.

 

Ryleigh turned and her breath caught as she saw Safika in her drivesuit. _She’s beautiful._

 

“Thank you,” Safika smirked.

 

“Right, ghost drifting.” Ryleigh chuckled and shook her head, a light blush touching her cheeks.

 

Avery walked over to them. “You guys ready for the big reveal?”

 

“As I’ll ever be,” Rinan answered as he joins them.

 

The bay doors opened, revealing to the world the two newest Mark 3 Jaegers and their pilots.

  



	2. Chapter 2

Soon enough they’d been Jaeger pilots for four years. Guardian Ace had 6 confirmed Kaiju kills. All Kaiju categories II and III - Tuskbasher, Razormaw, Shivstalker, Tailstriker, Shadeblade, and Ridgereaper. Armored Light has 5 Kaiju kills.

 

Armored Light was deployed after a distress signal came from Hogh Boldohr. Command realized too late that this was a new category of Kaiju. The first category IV. 

 

Rinan’s panicked voice echoed around command. “It’s..by the go-” then nothing but static. 

 

In unison, the siblings ran to Guardian Ace - they were going after their friends with or without permission. They arrived twenty-five minutes later and blasted the Kaiju with Guardian Ace’s plasma cannon. 

 

Rinan had ejected Safika from the Jaeger once the Kaiju had torn off their primary weapon. He piloted Armored Light for ten minutes alone. Rinan was retrieved from the Jaeger, and taken immediately to a medical facility. On the trip there, he was awake and responsive, but as they pulled into the hospital parking lot he experienced a brain haemorrhage and he died right there, alone, in the back of an ambulance. 

 

Ryleigh held Safika that night as she mourned the loss of her Jaeger partner and lover. For weeks Ryleigh’s nightmares consisted of the Kaiju tearing Armored Light and Guardian Ace apart. Safika had the same nightmares. 

\---

Four months later, Guardian Ace was called to action to protect the coast of Ascus. When they reached their destination, a passenger ship was trapped between them and the Kaiju. Avery wanted to save it and Ryleigh could feel it, because she was literally in his head. Were the lives of 200 people worth the risk of hundreds of thousands? 

 

Ryleigh shook her head, this was why they became Rangers - to save lives. They managed to save the passenger ship, but it came at a cost. The Kaiju gained the upper hand in the fight. Jaeger and Kaiju grappled in the ocean for a few minutes until the Kaiju ripped Guardian Ace’s left arm clean off.

 

Ryleigh and Avery screamed together. The A.I. spoke rapidly of loss of functions and losing balance and Ryleigh’s left arm was burning _.  _ The Kaiju’s hand gripped the conn-pod and a claw punctured through steel and glass. Metal shrieked as it was torn apart. More claws pierced through the conn-pod, tearing and ripping and  _ destroying _ . The A.I. spoke at them again, warning of a dozen different dangers and –

 

Suddenly Avery’s gone from the Drift.

_ Gone _ .

 

The pain was unbearable.

She bore it, somehow.

Alone, Ryleigh piloted over a thousand tons of Jaeger.

There were only two thoughts in her mind.

_ Avery. Survive. _

 

She found her inner strength and fired the plasma cannon of Guardian Ace’s right arm directly into Fusespitter’s monstrous face. It screeched as it died.

\---

One of the first things taught to them at the Jaeger Academy was  _ why  _ two or more pilots were required to operate a Jaeger. The neural load was simply too great for a single pilot to bear for any amount of time. It was enough to kill. And it had killed, in the past.

 

Gunnloda Frostbeard once piloted a Jaeger for twenty-two minutes on her own, while her partner Kafar lay crumpled on the floor of the conn-pod, killed by a Kaiju claw.

 

For that, Gunnloda Frostbeard became a legend. An irregularity. It was impossible according to scientists and doctors. They did not know how she had managed it, how she had survived.

 

She should have died, they said. Yet she bore the immense neural load, and she lived. 

\---

The pain was unbearable.

Ryleigh bore it, somehow.

One step after another.

Breathe in, breathe out. 

 

They reached the coastline.

 

Guardian Ace fell to its knees and remaining hand. Then, slowly, it toppled onto its side and was still.

 

Avery wasn’t dead. She dragged him out of Guardian Ace and onto the beach. Her head was pounding. Her left arm was burning with pain. Her vision was blurry and her eyes wouldn’t focus.

 

“Don’t die,” she snarled. Her own voice sounded distant behind the ringing of her ears. There was blood in her mouth, hot and metallic. The plates of her Drivesuit had been torn away from her left arm and there were angular gashes in the muscles beneath. She ignored that. “You don’t get to die. Not here. Not like this.”

 

“Your arm,” he said weakly. “It’s…bleeding.”

 

His legs were crooked. His breathing was laboured. There was a huge diagonal gash that ran the length of Avery’s chest. She felt his pain. There was so much  _ pain _ . Her vision blurred again.

 

“Please don’t die,” she begged him. Their hearts were hammering in their chests. “Avery,  _ please _ . I need you.”

 

Avery squeezed her hand weakly and said, “I’m trying not to.”

\---

Ryleigh was awake when they arrived at the hospital. There was a vast team of doctors and nurses already waiting with stretchers and necessary supplies. Her arm was bleeding, she tasted blood in her mouth, and her head hurt.

 

The doctors were shouting that an operating theatre had already been prepared for Avery. They whisked him away. Ryleigh’s vision was blurred and she thought her head might explode; blood dribbled from her nostrils and her lips. 

 

_ Everything hurts. It’s too much. He’s dying, I can feel it. I want it to end,  _ Ryleigh thought. 

 

Then she saw Safika’s face, her mouth was drawn into a line and her eyes were worried. Her lips were shaping words that Ryleigh couldn’t hear. Somehow, she knew what Safika was saying.

 

_ Hold on, Ryleigh. Just hold on. _

\---

Avery died that day. Ryleigh didn’t, but a part of her died with him.

 

“You were placed under enormous amounts of neural stress by piloting Guardian Ace alone for seventeen minutes.” The doctor’s voice was low and gentle. “I’ve recommended that you be taken off active duty until further notice. Whenever we feel you’re ready, you will have to sit a psychiatric evaluation and a physical examination before being approved for duty.”

 

Ryleigh sat, she listened, and nodded her understanding. Her head ached. Her ears rang. She tasted blood in her mouth. Her eyes were unfocused.

 

After a month they moved her back to the Shatterdome. She was placed in the medical wing of the facility and it was familiar. The Shatterdome was  _ home _ . Or it was before Avery died. Safika and Gunnloda were both there. The pain relievers that were being fed into Ryleigh’s system were strong. She dozed off into that strange, grey space between sleep and being awake, and she was barely conscious of doctors moving around her bed and checking her vitals, pulling her eyelids open to shine lights into her eyes and testing the responsiveness of her pupils.

 

She was conscious of Safika holding her left hand, and Gunnloda hovering on the right side of her bed, the two of them murmuring quietly. Ryleigh fell asleep, at last, to the sound of their voices and to the steady  _ beep-beep-beep-beep-beep  _ of her heartbeat.

 

Fusespitter crushed Avery and she woke up screaming. Safika wrapped Ryleigh in her arms and held her. Her voice was calming, “I’m here. You’re ok, Ryleigh. Just breathe. You’re safe. I’ve got you.”

\---

When Ryleigh was finally released from the medical wing, there’s an unspoken understanding that she’d be bunking with Safika.  _ Ghost drifting. _ They would be sleeping on bunk beds – Ryleigh won the right to sleep on the top bunk with a coin toss. 

 

Everytime she closed her eyes to sleep she saw the Kaiju:  Tuskbasher, Razormaw, Shivstalker, Tailstriker, Shadeblade. Fusespitter. Avery covered in blood and dying on the beach. Ryleigh jumped awake or screamed out into the darkness. But Safika was always there, she understood because she had them too. 

 

It happened more often than Ryleigh wanted to admit. It made her feel weak, but Safika told her the nightmares would get better with time. They woke each other up from the bad dreams, and laid side-by-side in the narrow cramped bed, and talked. Their voices were quiet and reassuring, like beacons to bring each other home. Then, usually, they fell asleep – legs intertwined, faces pressed into the other’s shoulder or neck, hands resting on hip or stomach. They fell asleep, breathing in time, hearts beating together. 

\---

It had been almost a month since she came home. Two since Avery died. Ryleigh dreamed of Fusespitter ripping Avery out of the conn-pod again. She awoke with a searing pain in her left arm, her head aching, and a metallic taste on her tongue. 

 

She got out of bed and threw on workout clothes. Ryleigh kneeled and brushed some hair from Safika’s face. She whispered, “I’m going for a run.” 

 

“I’ll c..co..cooome with you.” Safika responded with a yawn. “I felt you wake up.”

 

Ryleigh smiled and it felt strange, like her muscles had forgotten how, she gently pressed her lips to Safika’s forehead, lingering for a few moment. “I’ll be alright, go back to sleep. I just didn’t want you to worry.” 

 

So Ryleigh ran, but the sound of her footsteps alone was so wrong. It felt so alien. She felt empty without Avery running beside her. She staggered to a stop and vomited, ears ringing, head aching, tears in her eyes. She took deep, calming breaths for a few minutes.  

 

She couldn’t seem to forget the sensation of Guardian Ace’s left arm being torn away. She couldn’t forget how it felt to have the plates of her drivesuit ripped apart. There were angular scars on her left arm that matched the shape of the plates of her Drivesuit armor. She looked at the scars every morning in the mirror and traced her fingers over the ridged scar tissue. They were bright pink, now, but soon they’d fade. They would always remain as a reminder that it was her fault her brother wasn’t there. 

 

She used to find solace in running and in the rhythm in provided. Now she couldn’t seem to find balance, and like everything else in her life, it felt like something was missing. 

\---

“Ryleigh, it wasn’t your fault,” Safika said one night while they were lying together on her bunk.  _ Ghost drifting. _

 

Ryleigh pulled away from the embrace as she sat up to put her face into her hands. “It is. He wouldn’t have been here at all if it wasn’t for me. Olivia only wanted me but I wouldn’t come without him.” She swallowed around the lump in her throat. “I couldn’t save him…”

 

Safika rubbed Ryleigh’s back. “He made the decision to come with you. He understood the risk involved.” She was quiet for a while, letting her words sink in. “Ryleigh, you almost died that day too. You piloted the Jaeger alone for seventeen minutes...” Her voice was just above a whisper as she said, “and you survived…. Rinan died after just ten.” 

 

Ryleigh felt a surge of anguish that didn’t belong to her.  _ Ghost drifting goes both ways. _ “I wasn’t saying…” She stopped, because what could she say? “I’m thankful to be alive.”

 

After several minutes of silence, Ryleigh announced, “I’m going to the gym…”

 

Safika let her go without another word.

 

An hour later, it was 3:14am and it was her alone in the gym throwing fast punches and kicks into a beaten and worn punching bag until her hardened knuckles were bruised and bleeding. Safika came into the gym with a bucket of water and ice. She silently and gently drew Ryleigh away from the punching bag. Safika took Ryleigh’s purple and red hands and guided them into the water. 

 

Drifting makes everything more intense; there can’t be secrets between two people who’ve shared the same thoughts for years. When they lost Rinan and Avery, they lost a piece of themselves. Safika didn’t comment on her tears, she didn’t call Ryleigh foolish or reckless, because she understood her.

\---

It had been ten months since the first category IV came through the Breach. A total of five Jaegers destroyed and four pilots killed in action by the Kaiju.

 

The Jaegers fell and the Kaiju triumphed. Funding was pulled from the Jaeger program to support the construction of the wall. The first Shatterdome closed.

  
  



	3. Chapter 3

Ryleigh’s sitting on the beach, looking out over the ocean; the Shatterdome behind her makes for a dramatic backdrop. She’s watching as each wave steadily breaks on the beach then slowly ebbs away. Some days she feels so alone, like she’s standing on this same empty beach as an enormous wave of terror, loneliness, grief, and anger towers above, ready to crash into her and sweep her away. 

 

Lately, she’s been having fewer of these days. Her life has always been about becoming a ranger, saving lives, and helping others. It’s what she wants to do, it’s what she was born to do. Ryleigh gets to her feet slowly, letting the rhythm of the ocean calm her, and decides that it’s time. 

 

Ryleigh elects to go the main hangar where they keep the Jaegers. Safika insists on accompanying her. As Ryleigh looks at the Jaeger, she has a panicked thought,  _ what if I can’t do this.  _ Her throat constricts, breathing is suddenly difficult, her vision starts to blur at the edges, then suddenly Safika’s hand slips into hers.

 

“Take the time you need, Ryleigh. We don’t have to do this today, it’s ok if you’re not ready,” Safika says. 

 

Ryleigh looks determinedly at the Jaeger and shakes her head. “No. Let’s do it. I...I can do this.”

 

Safika looks concerned but replies, “Together then.” 

 

They put on generic drivesuits, and Ryleigh realizes this is the first time she’s wore one since - there’s a moment when she glances over at her left shoulder and sees only torn muscle - but the image disappears after she blinks.

 

“Are you all right?” Safika quietly asks. 

 

Ryleigh realizes her panicked expression must have shown. She can’t meet Safika’s gaze as she nods. “Just a memory.” That reminds her of something. R.A.B.I.T.s may threaten their drift. “Have you ever chased any R.A.B.I.T.s?”

 

Safika nods. “Once. I chased one of Rinan’s during training. It was a bad memory from when he was child.”

 

“Mine, if any appear, will be of the Kaiju,” Ryleigh confesses.

 

Safika nods again. “Mine too.” 

 

Without another word, they enter the drift.

 

Both of their brains offer R.A.B.I.T.s simultaneously. The world shifts and changes around them. 

 

Suddenly Fusespitter is a few hundred yards away. Guardian Ace takes a staggering step as the Kaiju rips off the Jaeger’s left arm. Ryleigh screams - there’s a pressure in her head, burning in her left arm, and a deep pain in her chest. Guardian Ace, one-armed and battered from the lengthy fight, crashes to the ground and is still. Avery’s scream echoes in her mind and there’s a metallic taste in her mouth. 

 

Somewhere in the back of her head she hears a familiar voice calling to her, “Don’t chase the R.A.B.I.T. - come back to me, Ryleigh - don’t chase it.” But it’s too late.

\---

Ryleigh slowly wakes to a steady  _ beep-beep-beep-beep-beep  _ of her heartbeat. She feels heavy and is vaguely aware of voices near her. Someone is talking in a hushed angry tone.

 

“I told you she wasn’t ready and you let her do it anyway. She isn’t you! She needs more time and now…” The anger in her voice turns to worry. “I can’t lose her too.”

 

“Ryleigh said she was ready. I had to take her at her word, Safika.” This voice sounds gentle, tired, and concerned. “I don’t want to burden her further with what happened, but she’s going to find out eventually.” 

 

Ryleigh’s eyes drift open and she blinks several times in the bright white light.

 

“I’ll tell her,” Safika answers as Gunnloda leaves them alone. She moves to Ryleigh’s bedside and takes her hand. “Hey….” Her voice is strained.

 

“Hi...” Ryleigh croaks out. She slowly reaches for the glass of water on the nightstand, but Safika beats her to it. She takes a few sips and says, “You’re still in a drivesuit, what… what happened? How long have I been out?”

 

Ryleigh feels Safika’s hesitation. 

 

“What. Happened,” Ryleigh repeats more firmly.

 

“You chased a R.A.B.I.T. and I couldn’t get you to come out of it. Your connection with the memory and the Jaeger was strong enough that it overrode the emergency failsafe. You’ve been out for nearly three hours.” Safika is delicately rubbing the back of Ryleigh’s hand.

 

“Did I…” Ryleigh’s throat constricts as she tries to finish the sentence.

 

Safika finishes it for her, “Yes.... Several people were injured when the plasma cannon activated. No one is badly hurt - just a few broken bones, scratches, and bruises.”

 

Ryleigh feels like she might break. She can’t meet Safika’s eyes, afraid of what she might see in them. She mumbles, “Are you all right?”

 

Safika’s hands are on her face, wiping away tears she didn’t realize were there. Ryleigh feels the press of lips to her forehead, “How could I be all right, Ry?...I felt everything you did through the drift.” 

 

She burrows her face in Safika’s chest, coming completely undone. She’s unable to hold the tears or guilt at bay any longer.

\---

It feels like everyone has been avoiding her gaze since she returned to light duty.  _ Of course they are, you hurt people. _ She puts her head down and walks towards her room. This isn’t how it was supposed to go. She should be out there saving lives. But Ryleigh can’t think about piloting a Jaeger with another person without feeling guilty, without feeling sick.  _ Oh, nope that’s actual sick. _

 

She breaks into a run, heading for the nearest bathroom. Her knuckles are white as she grips the porcelain underside of the sink, gritting her teeth together as she squeezes her eyes shut and concentrates on her breathing. Ryleigh blinks a few times and looks up, trying desperately not to cry. She wasn’t going to cry. She wouldn’t cry.

 

“Ry?...” Safika’s voice echoes around the bathroom.  _ Ghost drifting. _

 

Ok, maybe she  _ is _ going to cry. “I’m fine.” Ryleigh answers at once before taking a few measured breaths. “Maybe…” she chokes back a sob. “What if I can’t pilot again? Maybe I should take the honorable discharge.”

 

Safika’s face is torn. There’s raw emotion in her eyes as she reaches out to Ryleigh, grasping her shoulder. “It’s been 10 months since Avery died, Ryleigh. Since you almost died. You were still connected to him in the drift when the Kaiju ripped apart your Jaeger. You felt everything he did. His pain… his fear. And it’s only been 2 months since the accident.” 

 

There were six people injured when Ryleigh chased the R.A.B.I.T., four mechanics and two engineers who were doing maintenance on some scaffolding. One engineer fell several feet and broke his leg. Ryleigh apologized to everyone who was hurt. Most of them didn’t blame her - it was an accident.  _ One that could have been avoided _ .

 

“I should be out there saving people. I should be doing something! Anything.” Ryleigh’s anger, which is so near the surface these days, starts to rise.

 

Before Ryleigh can say anything more, there are gentle palms cupping her jaw and thumbs sweeping over her cheeks, calmly lifting Ryleigh’s face so their eyes can meet. “Come with me. I have something to show you.”

 

Safika leads them to the Kwoon Combat Room. It looks like it did five years ago when they were attending the Ranger Academy.  _ This _ is the room where drift compatibility is determined. It’s where they first met, but it’s empty now.

 

“Do you remember when we first sparred?” Safika asks.

 

Ryleigh quirks an eyebrow. “Of course I do. We were required to spar with every Ranger applicant, one on one, in front of the instructors, so they could determine drift compatibility.”

 

“We were the last two in the rotation and you had bested everyone except Avery,” she smirks, “but I could tell you were holding back.”

 

A laugh bubbles from Ryleigh’s mouth before she can stop it. “I remember  _ you _ challenging me and calling me out in front of everyone.” 

 

Safika tosses Ryleigh a wooden staff. “I’ll only spar against you if you start fighting like you mean it…,” she recollects. She steps into the sparring circle, gesturing for Ryleigh to join her. “Back then, I asked you not to hold back. I don’t want you to now either.” 

 

Ryleigh’s brow furrows at the statement, but she nods her agreement, and falls into a ready stance.

 

Several feet away, Safika waits, a smile gracing her lips and an eyebrow raised in challenge. Ryleigh lunges forward and brings the staff to a sudden stop, an inch from Safika’s face. Safika hasn’t moved. 

 

“One-zero,” Ryleigh calls out.

 

In a blur of motion, Safika knocks Ryleigh’s staff away with her own and darts in with a quick strike that stops less than an inch from Ryleigh’s neck. 

 

“One-one,” Safika replies.

 

They’re both grinning and Ryleigh finds herself thinking,  _ let the dance begin.  _ There’s a beauty in the way they move - two fighters of equal skill, meeting in combat. As one pushes, the other  pulls, their staffs meeting in a haze of motion, and they start to develop a rhythm. Ryleigh doesn’t hold back because Safika meets her blow by blow.  _ She’s met her match _ .

 

With a bolt of clarity, Ryleigh feels as if she’s been awakened from a long slumber. Everything is suddenly vivid and clear -  _ she’s the one. _ Safika is fast and strong and intelligent. 

 

Ryleigh feints, but Safika doesn’t fall for the movement and sweeps Ryleigh’s legs out from beneath her - literally and metaphorically. Ryleigh slams hard into the mat and lets out a grunt. She stares up at Safika with a look of determination and she feels the familiar pull in her head,  _ there you are _ .

 

They continue like this for some time, trying to throw one another off. Somehow, they find balance this way - together. Ryleigh notices that Safika smirks when she fights. Her brown eyes blaze with challenge and pride. 

 

Drift compatibility isn’t just about sparring with someone and discovering they’re your match, your equal. It’s about establishing a connection. A recognition. A relationship. 

 

Ryleigh sweeps out with her staff in a low arc and Safika jumps cleanly over the blow, raising her own staff and bringing it down in a fast strike. Ryleigh dodges to the side, striking at Safika’s ribs, but she steps away and blocks. 

 

Ryleigh wonders if they could spar like this forever. It hits her. Safika is the only person she’d be willing to pilot with again. Something about it just feels right. 

 

They spar until they’re sweaty and breathing hard. Ryleigh places her staff on the ground and bows formally to Safika. “Thank you,” she says. She realizes that she’ll never be able to find the exact words to express the feeling swelling up in her chest. Maybe hope or joy… possibly relief.

 

Safika places her staff on the mat too and bows back. “No, thank you.” She’s smiling that familiar grin, but there’s something else on her face, something soft - a realization.

 

They both feel less alone. 

\---

A Jaeger Mark 5 is created, but it’s too little, too late. The world’s politicians finance the Anti-Kaiju wall and shut down five more Shatterdomes. Now only two Shatterdomes remain - the one in Vyon and the one in Ascus.  The Marshals, scientists, engineers, and every Ranger who pilots the Jaegers are consolidated or decommissioned. 

 

Somehow Ryleigh isn’t forced to retire. It’s been a month since she and Safika sparred, since they found balance in one another. Ryleigh’s positive Marshal Frostbeard had to fight to keep her in the program. In the rework, they’re both transferred to the Palaedor Defense Corps in Vyon, and consolidation means new faces. Ryleigh was never great with people. 

 

Marshal Frostbeard holds a meeting in the main hangar of the Vyon Shatterdome. Newcomers and veterans stand together listening to her welcome speech. It’s full of hope and it’s inspiring, but Ryleigh can hear some of the bitterness in Gunnloda’s words. 

 

“We are all that stands in the way of the apocalypse. Starting today, there is not a man nor woman in here that shall stand alone. At the edge of our hope, at the end of our time, we must choose not only to believe in ourselves, but in each other. We will face the monsters that have been knocking at our door and bring the fight to them.” 

 

There’s applause, but Gunnloda holds up her hand to silence it and it immediately dies. “Prior to consolidation, our engineers and scientists were diligently working on the first Mark 5 Jaeger.” 

 

Behind her, two giant doors begin to open, revealing the Mark 5 Jaeger. 

 

“She is the strongest and fastest of the Jaegers. She has T-16 Angel Wings that act as stabilizers to maintain aerodynamic balance during the turbulence of burst combat. Her speed and agility should allow her pilots to combat and kill Kaiju quicker than the previous models.” Gunnloda makes eye contact with each pilot in the room.

 

She continues, “She is equipped with a pair of twin, retractable Assault Mount 3.25 ‘Light-Blades’ laced with carbon nanotubes that channel thermal energy at temperatures over 300 degrees Fahrenheit, which means she’s capable of wounding and cauterizing Kaiju in close combat. She also has a six-barreled Anti-Kaiju missile chest launcher equipped with eighteen individual K-stunner warheads that kill Kaiju with a direct hit.” 

 

“Her name is Dawnbringer and she represents a new age of Jaeger, and by extension, a new age of hope.”

 

The room erupts into cheers. Gunnloda lets them whoop and whistle and clap until the excitement eventually fades. 

 

Her speech concludes with, “She’ll be piloted by Ryleigh Alastair and Safika Muyar.” 

 

The silence that befell the crowd was palpable. Every head in the hangar turns to look at them almost in unison. Ryleigh feels the sudden weight of hundreds of eyes watching her,  _ judging her _ . Ryleigh swallows and remembers the taste of blood in her mouth, her left arm starts to burn, and there’s a faint ache at the back of her head. 

 

Suddenly, there’s a hand in hers, warm and familiar. Her anxiety begins to recede and vanishes altogether when her eyes find Safika’s.  _ We’re in this together. _ Safika doesn’t let go of Ryleigh’s hand as she leads them through the crowd and to the podium. 

 

They each receive new dog tags. 

 

**PDC RANGER | R-24-003 | Alastair, Ryleigh | AB NEG**

**JAEGER - MARK 5 - DAWNBRINGER**

 

**PDC RANGER | R-24-002 | MUYAR, SAFIKA | O NEG**

**JAEGER - MARK 5 - DAWNBRINGER**

 

Ryleigh can’t tell if its disapproval or shock, but there’s scattered applause from the crowd then total silence. 

\---

They all head to the mess hall, but before Ryleigh can enter, Gunnloda pulls her aside.

 

Ryleigh snaps to attention. “Marshal Frostbeard.”

 

Gunnloda chuckles. “I want a word. Come to my office, Ranger Alastair.” She leads the way and Ryleigh follows along.

 

When they enter Gunnloda’s office, all formality seems to drop between them. “Ryleigh, are you wondering why I assigned you to Dawnbringer?” Gunnloda gestures for Ryleigh to take a seat.

 

“I...” Ryleigh clears her throat awkwardly. “Yes, I don’t doubt your decision, but after what happened a few months ago… I thought that...” She sighs in defeat. “I thought I wouldn’t be allowed to pilot again.” 

 

Gunnloda smiles kindly at Ryleigh, “After the incident, I had no intention of letting you pilot again.” 

 

Ryleigh’s face is nearly expressionless, but there’s hurt in her eyes at the words. 

 

Gunnloda continues before Ryleigh can comment. “But, you’ve changed since then and I watched it happen.” She’s silent for a few minutes, watching Ryleigh as her words sink in. “I was there that day, when you and Safika sparred in the Kwoon Combat Room, up in the viewing gallery. It’s somewhere I go to think.” She adds as an afterthought. 

 

“It was marvellous watching you two. You fell into perfect synchronization within minutes. It was pure drift compatibility. You’re a good pair and I have no doubt about that, but more importantly, I believe you’ve found balance in each other. Have you?”

 

Ryleigh thinks about the question: has she found balance in Safika? A blush creeps up her neck, her heart starts to beat erratically, and her palms are suddenly sweaty. “Uh….” Ryleigh feels like it’s 15 degrees hotter in here. “I… umm...”

 

Her blush and nervousness must have shown, because Gunnloda lets out a bark of a laugh. “Gods Ryleigh, I didn’t ask you if you were in love with her, just if you felt like you were ready to pilot with her.” As her laughter dies, her smile remains. “Just remember, there isn’t a whole lot you can keep from someone when you share the same headspace.”

 

Ryleigh is so consumed by her thoughts and the flutter in her stomach that she responds to Gunnloda robotically, “I’m ready to pilot and I won’t let you down.” 

 

“I know. You’re dismissed Ranger Alastair.” Gunnloda looks at her with a knowing smile. 

 

Everything instantly snapped into place.  _ That’s the feeling she had the day they sparred. _ Yes, it was hope and it was joy and it was relief… but it was love too, she’s in love with Safika.

\---

With her mind elsewhere, Ryleigh somehow finds herself at the mess hall. She looks up and sees Safika waiting for her. Ah, that’s why she walked here subconsciously.  _ Ghost drifting. _

 

“Hey… everything ok? I saw Gunnloda talking to you.” Safika’s reaches out and takes Ryleigh’s hand, her face is lined with worry and her voice is concerned.

 

“She wanted to make sure I was ok with her decision. And also, with… with this.” Ryleigh stutters and awkwardly gestures between them, then looks away as she does.

 

The worry and concern disappears from Safika’s features as she quirks an eyebrow and her lips curl into a smirk. “And? Are you?”

 

Ryleigh’s eyes lock onto Safika’s at the question.  _ She knows _ . “I… uh… of course I am. You’re… you’re my best friend and we’re drift compatible and I...”

 

Safika giggles and shakes her head, “Come on. I’m hungry.” 

 

As they get their food, a lot of people seem to recognize Ryleigh. She catches their whispers and stares, but no one tries to approach her. Unbeknownst to her, Safika has been glaring at anyone who whispers or stares too long. They find an empty table and take seats next to each other.

 

They’ve barely started to eat when a very large and muscled half-orc woman takes a seat at their table and bluntly says, "Think yer fit t' pilot?" 

 

There’s the silence again. Everyone near them has fallen into an uneasy quiet. Ryleigh feels Safika shift protectively next to her. She looks up from her food and calmly asks, “Excuse me?” 

 

The half-orc woman’s face hardens, "I know what happn’d, do ye think yer fit t' pilot?"

 

A short half-elf woman with dark hair hurries over to them. “Urrak,” she warns, “don’t. You’re about to cause a scene.”

 

“She 'asn't piloted in more ‘n a year,” Urrak says abruptly. "If yer goin' t' have our backs out there, then I need t' know - do ye think yer fit t' pilot?”

 

Ryleigh’s gaze is intense as she responds, “Marshal Frostbeard seems to think so and…,” glancing to the woman sitting next to her she says, “I wouldn’t be here if I wasn’t.” 

 

Urrak considers her for a long time before nodding and offering her hand, “Urrak D’Akshi from th’ Nampuli Shatterdome. This is Malica, my co-partner, girl-pilot, pilot-friend...ah fer fucks sake...” 

 

“It’s complicated,” Malica finishes for Urrak. “We pilot Primal Harmony.” 

 

They’re soon joined by a pink tiefling named Seirixori. She plops down into the seat next to Ryleigh. Ryleigh is fairly sure Seirixori isn’t addressing anyone specific when she says, “Marshal Frostbeard is hot, don’t you think?” 

 

Ryleigh can’t help but laugh at the statement, not because it’s untrue but because it’s Gunnloda. And she just can’t think of her as anything more than a mentor or parental figure.  _ Ew. _ Safika chuckles next to her.  _ Ghost drifting. _

 

Urrak waves over three more people to their table as she answers Seirixori, “Ye got yer eye set on the Marshal? Ambitious.” 

 

As the three people join, Urrak starts to introduce them. “This is Ravaphine,” pointing to tall and thin white haired elf, “and Nolanos,” Urrak continues, pointing to an even taller bronze dragonborn. “They’re scientists.”

 

A toned, red tiefling gestures exuberantly to herself, “I don’t need anyone to introduce me, Urrak, but thanks. I’m Brimeia, co-pilot of Barbarian Jinx.” She winks at Ravaphine before taking her seat.  

 

Ryleigh notices a blush on Ravaphine’s face before she spots a tattoo on her forearm. “Is that... Razormaw?” 

 

Ravaphine gets excited and moves to show her arm to everyone. “Oh, this little Kaiju? It sure is, you got a good eye.”

 

“My brother and I took him down a few years ago.” Ryleigh says, no humor in her voice.

 

“You know, he was one of the biggest Category III’s ever. He was 2,500 pounds of awesome!”

 

Ryleigh gives Ravaphine a cold look and stands from the table.

 

Ravaphine quickly amends her statement, “or awful. You know, whatever you want to call it.”

 

“Please excuse her. She’s a Kaiju groupie. She totally loves them,” Nolanos tells everyone.

 

Ravaphine looks mock offended. “Shut up, Nolanos, I don’t love them, okay? I study them. And unlike _ most  _ people, I want to see one live and up close one day.”

 

Ryleigh picks up her tray and walks away from the others, but before she’s out of earshot she hears Safika answer, “Trust me, you really don’t.”

\---

The others are relentless and after a few days, they insert themselves into Ryleigh’s life - even when she doesn’t want them there. They regularly eat meals with Ryleigh and Safika now, exchanging stories from their parts of the world and explaining everything they know, which isn’t a whole lot. 

 

Ravaphine and Nolanos have been planning something with Gunnloda. She can tell by the way the two scientists excitedly whisper to one another. They’re also making regular trips to a less reputable district, and Nolanos came back once with a bloodshot eye. 

 

Ryleigh catches a glimpse of a television screen in the mess hall while eating lunch. A special news broadcast interrupted the usual program. Across the top of the screen in large letters: PROTEST IN 8 CITIES AFTER ANTI-KAIJU WALL FAILS.

 

Seirixori pushes her tray away and mumbles, “I can’t eat anymore.”

 

Ryleigh finishes her meal robotically.

 

Safika doesn’t look at the screen again.

 

Gunnloda watches the words flash on the screen, over and over again. 

 

Ryleigh notices that Gunnloda takes Seirixori’s hand as she mumbles, “We  _ told _ them. All this time, we told them that no wall was going to stop a Kaiju. They never listened. Not even when Kafar spelled it out for them.” She says something in Dwarven - Ryleigh assumes it’s a swear word.

\---

The others gather to watch Dawnbringer’s first field test. The excitement is tangible. 

 

Dawnbringer’s drivesuits are sleek and black, with a thick golden stripe. Ryleigh’s fits perfect. She’s testing the mobility of the drivesuit, when she feels a familiar burning in her left arm. She shakes it, trying to remind herself that she’s fine. 

 

Safika notices the movement and reaches out to lay a hand on the left pauldron of Ryleigh’s drivesuit. “I’m here for you. Remember that.”

 

Ryleigh rests her hand on top of Safika’s and smiles. “I know. I’m here for you too.” She lets go of Safika’s hand. “I’m ready this time, I promise.” 

 

Together, they enter the drift. 

 

They drift and their bond is strong. No R.A.B.I.T.s threaten them this time. It’s a testament to how compatible they are. 

 

The test run goes smoothly and the crowd cheers.

 

After they’ve come out of the drift and disengaged from the equipment, while they’re still in the conn-pod, Ryleigh glances over and Safika is staring at her with a smile on her face. 

 

Suddenly they’re together, and Safika is laughing into her hair, and Ryleigh’s arms wrap around Safika’s waist. The drivesuits make embracing awkward, and the armored plates thud against one another, but the two of them hardly notice. They embrace, and it feels right. 

 

Ryleigh whispers, “That was… I’ve never felt that before. It was amazing.”

 

Safika draws back so she can look into Ryleigh’s eyes. “It really was.”

 

They exit the conn-pod together and the others are waiting to greet them. Urrak picks Ryleigh up in a bone crushing hug while Malica shakes Safika’s hand in congratulations. 

 

Gunnloda places one hand on Ryleigh’s cheek and the other on Safika’s and leans in close so only they can hear her. “You both did wonderful. They’d be so proud of you.” As she withdraws her hands and steps back, Ryleigh and Safika’s eyes are glassy with unshed tears, but they’re both smiling. 

 

Seirixori runs and leaps at Ryleigh, nearly tackling her in a hug. Ravaphine, Nolanos, and Brimeia pop open a bottle of bubbly alcohol in celebration. As they walk through the crowd receiving congratulations, handshakes, and claps on their backs, Ryleigh’s mind is hyper aware of Safika’s hand in hers. 

 

When drifting with someone, without fear, it feels like you can achieve anything. Like you can run a thousand miles without stopping, like you can race with the wind itself, like you can reach out and grasp the stars. They have their differences, but all Rangers do. What’s more important is the relationship. The harmony. The balance. 

\--- 

They go for a run to get away from the celebrations inside the Shatterdome. They find a steady rhythm almost immediately. Left foot, right foot. Breathe in, breathe out. One two one two one two. Ryleigh and Safika run together, side by side, in perfect synchronisation.

 

As they run, Ryleigh’s thoughts wander. She doesn’t just want to prove herself. She wants to avenge Avery. Her anger starts to rise. This isn’t just about saving people, it’s about family this time. She doesn’t notice that she’s picked up her pace. This is about exacting vengeance on the Kaiju. 

 

Safika comes to a sudden stop and Ryleigh does too, nearly three paces later.

 

“Something wrong?” Ryleigh asks, eyebrows drawing together, face puzzled. She steps over to Safika, head tilted slightly to the side, eyes curious.

 

“Dance with me,” Safika says, breathless from the run but smiling nonetheless.

 

Ryleigh blinks in surprise. “Uhh, well I…” Sweat beads at her temple and run down past her jaw. “It’s been so long, I’m not sure I’d be a great partner.”

 

“That doesn’t matter,” Safika tells her. “ _ This _ does. Dance with me.” She waits another moment before stepping into Ryleigh’s space. “Trust me.”

 

Ryleigh brushes some hair from Safika’s face as she says, “All right. Let’s dance.” Her lips twist into a smile.

 

“Place your hand on my waist - yes - and hold this hand,” Safika instructs Ryleigh. Her hand rests on Ryleigh shoulder, and they begin to dance. 

 

Neither of them ask if music is needed because why would they need music when their hearts beat out a steady rhythm? 

 

Ryleigh’s a little unsure when they start dancing, but then she relaxes and lets her feet fall where they should. She lets herself move with Safika and realizes it’s not all that different from running. Ryleigh leads, at first. Then Safika takes her by surprise when she leads them into a turn. Ryleigh lets her take control, saying nothing, just smiling. They move together, as one, dancing to a rhythm that only they can feel.

  
  



	4. Chapter 4

A meeting is held where Gunnloda reveals a plan. A direct assault on the Breach - the tear in our dimension where the Kaiju spawn. It’s been tried before, but it’s always failed. Every explosive just bounced off the outside of the Breach. This time, the plan is to destroy it from within. 

 

“A Jaeger will enter the Breach, carrying an explosive device. Upon entering the Breach, the explosive device will be detonated,” Nolanos explains, “and the energy from the explosion should be enough to destabilize the Breach, sealing it forever.”

 

The pilots of Primal Harmony look at the pilots of Dawnbringer and the four of them watch as a grim realization appears on each other’s faces. Who’s piloting the Jaeger that’ll enter the Breach?

 

Ryleigh and Safika storm into Gunnloda’s office after the meeting. 

 

“Tell me -  _ tell me _ \- that you’re not piloting the Jaeger carrying the explosive,” Ryleigh snaps at Gunnloda. 

 

There’s silence. 

 

Gunnloda shakes her head and rubs her tired eyes. “I can’t do that, Ryleigh. I won’t lie. Not to you two.” 

 

Ryleigh feels sick. “There has to be a way to save everyone. Autopilot or something, anything!” Safika places a hand on Ryleigh’s back, rubbing small circles in an attempt to calm her. 

 

A voice Ryleigh’s never heard echoes from behind them. “It has to be us.” An older halfling woman is standing in the doorway. “It’s for the greater good.”

 

Gunnloda stands and walks around her desk. “This is Kendall, she’s… an old friend. We’ll be piloting the Jaeger that will enter the Breach.” 

 

Ryleigh’s angry. “You’ve already given so much! You deserve better than this.”  _ This isn’t fair _ . 

 

“We all deserve better than this,” Kendall says as she reaches out a hand to grip Gunnloda’s arm. “It’s a small sacrifice to make. Two people, to seal the Breach shut. Think of all the lives we’ll save.”

 

“Thousands. Millions, perhaps.” Gunnloda replies as she meets Ryleigh’s gaze. “And there’s no way we’re letting anyone else do this. It will be us.” 

 

As they turn to leave, Ryleigh sees Seirixori standing in the door, framed by the light outside. Judging by the look on her face, she heard enough. Ryleigh places a hand on Seirixori’s shoulder as they exit Gunnloda’s office. 

 

_ There has to be a way, _ Ryleigh thinks furiously.  _ There has to be a way to save them. A way to save everyone. _

\---

Ravaphine and Nolanos drift together with a Kaiju brain that Ravaphine bought on the black market. They discover that the Kaiju are cloned, that they are controlled by a race of beings called Precursors, but most disturbingly, the Kaiju are being sent to colonize the world. 

 

“Colonize,” Urrak says in disbelief. “They were sent t' destroy us an' they're clones. Fuckin' clones!” She folds her massive arms and scowls. “What terrible science-fiction novel is this?” 

 

Malica places a hand on Urrak’s forearm, getting the larger woman to unfold her arms and take Malica’s hand instead. 

 

Ryleigh finds it equally as disturbing, “We’ve fought the Kaiju for so long and we’re just now learning about their motivations…”

 

“I almost don’t want to believe it,” Safika murmurs next to Ryleigh. 

\---

Ryleigh dreams about Fusespitter ripping off Guardian Ace’s left arm. She dreams that Fusespitter tears the conn-pod open and throws Safika into a raging ocean. Ryleigh wakes with a start, drenched in sweat, heart hammering in her chest. 

 

She jumps down from the top bunk and shakily gets a drink a water. She hears Safika get up from her bunk and feels her approach. She gently lays a hand on Ryleigh’s bicep. 

 

“Ry?” Safika’s voice doesn’t sound groggy from sleep, but it’s still soft and a little unsure.

 

Ryleigh looks from the hand on her arm to Safika’s brown eyes and has a moment of clarity. They deploy tomorrow, they’re going to assault the Breach. The dream  _ could _ become reality. 

 

Why’d it take her so long to see it? Safika is wise. Safika is kind. Safika is hard working and talented and strong and funny and caring and beautiful and Safika is just  _ everything _ and Ryleigh doesn’t know how to handle it anymore, how to handle this feeling inside her.

“I want to kiss you,” Ryleigh says. Safika goes quiet, staring up at her with wide eyes, something almost akin to fear in them. 

Ryleigh’s brow furrows in concern as she reaches out, threading her hand into dark curly hair. “Why do you look scared?” she asks in a hushed voice.

Safika looks into Ryleigh’s violet eyes, her throat bobbing and jaw tensing as she swallows. 

 

Ryleigh’s fingertips drift from Safika’s hair to her face; she smoothes them over her warm forehead, over sculpted cheekbones. She sweeps her thumb across Safika’s lips and her heart jumps in her chest up into her throat. Ryleigh feels as though she might choke on it. 

 

“Are you afraid of me?” Ryleigh whispers, her heart sinking as she presses the pad of her thumb into the heavy line that’s appeared between Safika’s brows as she stroked her lips. 

 

Safika’s eyes closed as Ryleigh caresses, but when she speaks, Safika opens them. They’re so big and glossy and brown; Ryleigh can see her reflection in them, frowning back at Safika just as fearfully. 

 

“No,” Safika says breathlessly. Her lower lip almost seems to tremble beneath Ryleigh’s thumb, but she couldn’t be sure—she presses it into Safika’s lip more firmly, and almost like an instinctual response, Safika kisses her thumb. 

 

They both stiffen, eyes flicking up to meet. Safika looks more scared now. Ryleigh feels like maybe she should take a step back, so she drops her hand. 

 

Safika swallows again. Hesitantly, she reaches out—reaches to take Ryleigh’s hand in hers, to entwine their fingers. Ryleigh’s heart is thrumming in her chest. Wordlessly, Safika tugs Ryleigh forward, bringing her close so their bodies were flush together. Then she’s inclining her head—  

But Ryleigh has to know. “But you’re scared…,” she persists, her voice less than a whisper.

“I’m—I’m scared of how you make me feel,” Safika admits, soft and hushed. “You…” She reaches up with her free hand, slipping her fingers into the tangles of golden hair. “I can’t…I’ve loved someone like you before…I don’t know if....” Safika pauses, searching Ryleigh’s face. 

 

“I want to kiss you,” she says, echoing Ryleigh’s earlier words. “Because I’m attracted to you. Because I think you’re beautiful. Because you are…  _ incredible _ , Ry,” Safika’s voice drops to such a whisper Ryleigh can barely catch her words, but she catches the way Safika is inclining her head, their noses brushing— “I can’t lose you too, and all I want is—“

 

The sentence is left unfinished, because Safika’s lips are grazing against hers now and it would take a will that even Ryleigh doesn’t have to stop herself from leaning forward, pressing their mouths together. 

 

Safika’s sigh is caught in her throat as she urges forward slightly again, deepening the kiss. Ryleigh’s lips part beneath hers without warning, granting Safika entrance, and she feels a shiver wrack her entire body as tongue meets tongue. 

 

Ryleigh kisses Safika slowly and deeply, every sweep of her tongue, every gentle kiss as purposeful and deliberate as the way she rubs her thumb across the back of Safika’s knuckles in slow circles. They pull away from one another slowly. 

 

Ryleigh’s heart trembles in her chest, as Safika immediately wraps her up in a hug. They cling onto one another, hearts beating in time, before Safika pulls back. Ryleigh’s breath catches as soft, full lips press to her forehead, thumbs sweeping over her cheeks before gentle palms cup the back of her neck. She is helpless to resist. They kiss softly, slowly, savoring it, before they run out of breath and Safika pulls back to rest their foreheads together.

 

“Took you long enough,” Safika says.

 

Ryleigh chuckles. “I’m sorry, we could have had more time.”

 

Safika pulls back to look Ryleigh in the eyes. “Don’t...that sounds too much like a goodbye.” 

 

Safika removes her hand from Ryleigh’s face and starts to trace the angular scars that mark Ryleigh’s left arm. “If we can’t destroy the breach tomorrow, please… don’t act the hero.” Her voice is soft, it’s scared; it doesn’t break but it doesn’t have to. Ryleigh can feel her hurt. 

 

Without another word, Ryleigh lifts Safika bridal style and moves them to the bed. They shift on the small bunk to comfortably face one another, their legs intertwined, their breathing in sync. Safika presses her hand to Ryleigh’s chest, feeling her heart softly beat against the skin. 

 

Before sleep takes them both, Safika hears Ryleigh mumble, “I have too much to live for.”

 

\---

 

It’s the day of their mission. They go to breakfast and the air in the mess hall is heavy and grim. Everyone knows what they’re about to attempt, what they’re putting on the line. Ryleigh eats her breakfast robotically. Safika makes sure that the other pilots eat too.

 

There’s one final briefing. Ravaphine reports that two Kaiju have crawled from the Breach and are now circling it, waiting, keeping guard. They’re waiting for the Jaegers and both are Category IVs: one has been codenamed Clawflayer, the other Knifebasher.

 

The six of them get suited up in the drivesuit room, with technicians helping them into the circuitry suits and securely fastening the polycarbonate armour over the top. 

 

Once Urrak is fully armored, she bends over and kisses Malica on the lips. The others look away to give them some measure of privacy.

 

Malica murmurs, “I bought us some land, last night. In Numpali.”

 

Urrak laughs quietly. “With lots o’ trees?” she asks hopefully.

 

“Lots. There’s small hill and it’s near a river. You’ll love it.” Malica replies with a smile.

 

“O’ course I will,” Urrak declares, fierce and loving. “We’ll build a big cabin, with our own hands, and it’ll be  _ ours _ .”

 

Malica tenderly says, “We will, Sugar, and it’ll be wonderful.”

 

Before they get into the Jaegers everyone hugs each other, one last time. 

 

Seirixori wishes them all the best, then turns to Gunnloda, eyes filled with unshed tears, “I’ll be watching over you.”

 

“I know you will,” Gunnloda replies as pulls Seirixori close and presses their lips together. 

 

“You’re the best LOCCENT Officer there is, Seirixori,” Ryleigh says with a sad smile. 

 

Seirixori draws Ryleigh into hug after Gunnloda walks away. “Come back, Ryleigh. And if you can… bring everyone back too.”

 

“I will,” Ryleigh says fiercely and she extracts herself from Seirixori. 

 

\---

 

Safika and Ryleigh step into Dawnbringer’s conn-pod. 

 

When drifting with someone, it feels like there’s nothing left to talk about, but Ryleigh doesn’t want to regret all the things she’s never said. 

 

Ryleigh grabs Safika’s hand and pulls her close, “Whatever happens today, I just-”

 

Safika presses a finger to Ryleigh lips, effectively cutting off the rest of the sentence. “Tell me when we get back tonight.” Safika cups Ryleigh’s face and their lips meet. Safika hovers hardly an inch away and all Ryleigh wants to do is swallow the space between them. Their lips fit together perfectly, like they’ve done this a thousand times before, and Ryleigh never wants it to stop. 

 

Ryleigh’s stomach turns, a deep pull hitting her low as Safika presses into her, both of them inhaling sharply through their noses, intent on keeping their lips together for as long as possible. Safika tilts her head to deepen the kiss, her nose lightly brushing Ryleigh’s. 

 

Ryleigh lifts her hands to tangle her fingers in Safika’s curly hair. Safika shivers and Ryleigh knows it’s not because she’s cold. They clutch one another closer, slightly swaying where they stand. Ryleigh pulls back and presses their foreheads together as they quietly take shaky breaths. 

 

Ryleigh’s eyes flutter open, she’s a little dazed by the intensity of the kiss, but then, “ _ Dawnbringer, are you ready? _ ” comes through the Jaeger’s comms. It’s an abrupt return to reality, but they both nod to each other and strap in. 

\---

The Jaegers are lifted into the air by V-50 Jumphawks flying in teams of four. Sturdy cables are attached to a team of Jumphawks and to the shoulders of each Jaeger. There are eight Jumphawks for each Jaeger, twenty-four in all, and the sound of the twin rotor aircraft is nearly deafening.

 

The Jaegers rise up from the Shatterdome in a way that defies belief. A large crowd watches them go: doctors and nurses, engineers and mechanics, scientists and technicians. At the front of the crowd stand Seirixori and Brimeia, while Ravaphine and Nolanos raise their hands in grave farewell. Then, borne aloft by the Jumphawks, they set off across the ocean and towards the Breach. 

\---

They reach the drop point.

 

“ _ It’s time, _ ” Seirixori says over the communications channel. “ _ Are you all ready? _ ”

 

A universal “yes” echoes from the other Jaeger pilots.

 

Ryleigh flicks several switches to close all the Jaeger’s ports. “All ports sealed. Ready to submerge.”

 

The Jumphawks release them.

 

Primal Harmony, Dawnbringer, and Sovereign Host are dropped into the ocean and sink beneath the surface of the water. The water grows darker and darker all around them while they sink until they have barely any visibility at all. When they land on the ocean floor, a sand and silt cloud rises around them and each Jaeger activates their instruments.

 

They’re less than 1000 yards from the breach when the first Kaiju slams into Sovereign Host, sending the Jaeger stumbling through the water.

 

“ _ Keep it off us!” _ Kendall barks out. “ _ We can’t let it near the explosive! _ ”

 

Dawnbringer lurches through the water, left light blade gleaming in the darkness. The Kaiju, Clawflayer, surges through the ocean quickly, twisting around before heading straight at Dawnbringer. It collides into the Jaeger and rakes its claws into Dawnbringers shoulders, searching for purchase, attempting to rip and tear - to disable.

 

They punch the monster with Dawnbringer’s right fist, a hook that makes the Kaiju screech. Then the light sword flashes through the water as Ryleigh growls, “For Avery” and the blade opens a cruel gash in the Kaiju’s side. Clawflayer screeches again and releases Dawnbringer, but the Jaeger grabs on with its right fist and thrust the sword forward, piercing deep into the Kaiju’s belly. Ryleigh and Safika yank their left arms up, cutting a long and savage wound into Clawflayer and disemboweling the creature in one fell cut.

 

“ _ We’ve got company! _ ” shouts Gunnloda, just as Knifebasher is launching itself out of the gloom and directly at Primal Harmony, lashing out viciously.

 

Clawflayer thrashes and slowly sinks down onto the ocean floor, organs and blood spilling from the wound stretching up its belly. Dawnbringer steps towards Primal Harmony to assist, when suddenly Seirixori’s voice is speaking to them over the communication channel.

 

“ _ There’s movement in the breach! It’s a big fucking Kaiju…” _

 

They all hear an audible gasp from the people at command as Ravaphine’s voice echoes through the Jaeger’s comms line. “ _ Oh no, I was right...it’s a Category V. _ ”

\---

The third Kaiju claws its way out of the Breach and rises up like some kind of demon rising from one of the infinite layers of the abyss, a monstrosity from the stories of old. The six Rangers all curse as one.

 

Seirixori calls it Cataclysm. 

 

Cataclysm is easily twice the size of Knifebasher and literally towers over the Jaegers. It strikes out at Sovereign Host savagely and hurls the Jaeger back through the water. 

 

It reminds Ryleigh of a cat toying with a mouse before making the decision to end its life. Dawnbringer charges forward. 

 

“ _ BE CAREFUL!” _ Seirixori warns. “ _ That thing’s too big to grapple with! _ ” 

 

Safika and Ryleigh grit their teeth and dodge to the side as Cataclysm lashes at them with a monstrous arm. Primal Harmony is still wrestling with Knifebasher, landing solid and brutal punches to the Kaiju’s head and chest, but somehow it’s still managing to hold onto the Jaeger.

 

Urrak shouts something in Orcish as Primal Harmony folds one of its arms over Knifebasher’s, grips onto its flesh, and twists. The Jaeger jerks and Knifebasher’s arm bends unnaturally - unnaturally even for a Kaiju - it screeches so loudly that even Gunnloda and Kendall swear, from a few hundred yards away. 

 

Cataclysm thrashes out at Dawnbringer, who ducks beneath the blow and moves in closer. “If we can get in close enough,” Safika shouts, “we can activate the chest launcher!”

 

“We don’t know if the K-stunner warheads will kill this Kaiju with a direct hit,” Ryleigh shouts back.

 

“Have a better idea?” Safika smirks as they dodge another monstrous arm. Safika feels Ryleigh agree with her through the drift. 

 

But then Cataclysm turns away, the movement is oddly familiar to them. Comprehension dawns on Ryleigh and Safika as they both shout, “The tail!” and try to leap away, but it’s too late. The Jaeger is moving too slowly in the water and Cataclysm is wickedly fast, deadly fast. 

 

The Category V Kaiju’s tail whips through the water and slams into Dawnbringers side with the force of an explosion. It sends them surging back through the water, arms flailing helplessly, until they collide with a tall outcropping of rock. Sandy water surges around the Jaeger and obscures everything from view as they attempt to right themselves.

 

“Are you all right?” Safika asks. Ryleigh feels her concern through the drift.

 

Ryleigh breathes in and her ribs hurt a little, but she ignores the pain. “Yes. Are you?”

 

“I’m fine. We have to put this thing down,” Safika responds. 

 

They manage to get to their feet and Dawnbringer rises up. The A.I. informs them of slight damage to the right arm and leg. They take a step forward, and then another, and step free of the murky water. 

 

Before them, Primal Harmony is stretched out between Cataclysm and Knifebasher, arms taut and straining as the two Kaiju attempt to tear the Jaeger’s arms from its body. Sovereign Host is lunging toward Primal Harmony, both of its Sting-Blades drawn, but it’s too far away and won’t make it in time. 

 

Malica says, “ _ You fucking- _ ” but suddenly the arms tear away from Primal Harmony. Cataclysm screeches in triumph. Near defenceless, Primal Harmony staggers back while Malica and Urrak scream as one. Sovereign Host leaps through the water and is knocked aside almost carelessly by Cataclysm. Knifebasher  pounces on Primal Harmony and knocks it to the ocean floor. 

 

“ _ It’s goin’ t’ finish us! _ ” Urrak shouts. “ _ We can blast it with th’ vents- _ ”

 

“NO!” Ryleigh’s voice yells into comms. She and Safika are moving as fast as they can. “You know what happens if you do that! Just get to the escape pods!”

 

“ _ Alastair, you lovely optimist, I don’t think that will make a difference, _ ” Malica says sadly. “ _ Knifebasher is waiting for that. It’ll kill us all the same. _ ” 

 

“ _ If we’re going t’ die, _ ” says Urrak, “ _ then let it be in this Jaeger, t’gether. _ ” 

 

_ No, _ Ryleigh thinks desperately as Dawnbringer charges over.  _ No no no. I’m going to bring you all home. We’re all leaving here alive today. There has to be- _

 

“The explosive,” Safika murmurs. “What if-”

 

“ _ Detonate the explosive! _ ” Seirixori snaps over the communication channel suddenly. “ _ NOW!” _

 

“ _ Get down! _ ” shouts Gunnloda. Sovereign Host is rising up, reaching for the somehow - undamaged explosive on its back. The Jaeger unhooks the device and takes two quick steps, gripping the device in its right hand and lining up the shot. “ _ Get down, Dawnbringer! _ ”

 

Sovereign Host hurls the device through the water. 

 

Safika and Ryleigh crouch down, using a Light-Blade as an anchor, embedding it deep into the rock of the ocean floor. Cataclysm whips around and catches the device in its mouth, fooled into thinking that it was something other than a weapon. 

 

The explosive goes off and the resulting shockwave slams into Dawnbringer with a truly immense force. They hold on, somehow - the Jaeger’s joints creak and groan and Ryleigh whispers, “Come on, Dawnbringer,” while Safika says, “You can do it!” 

 

The force dissipates at last, and an eerie sort of quiet and calm is left in its wake, almost like a void. 

 

The communications channel crackles with static. Someone’s communicator has been damaged. 

 

“ _ We’re alive, _ ” Kendall calls over comms. “ _ Primal Harmony? _ ”

 

“ _ We’re alive, _ ” Malica replies, and then laughs incredulously. “ _ We’re alive. _ ” 

 

“ _ Dawnbringer? _ ” comes Gunnloda’s voice, sharp and worried. “ _ Dawnbringer!” _

 

“We’re alive.” Ryleigh gasps out, her ribs are starting to bother her more. Dawnbringer slowly gets to its feet.

 

Then Seirixori’s voice is in their ears. “ _ Sovereign Host, our readings say that your nuclear core is overheating out of control and damaged beyond repair. _ ” Her voice is tense. “ _ You have to evacuate that Jaeger now. _ ” 

 

Kendall makes a sound of disagreement. “ _ But we- _ ” 

 

“You can’t help us now,” Safika says quietly. She glances over to Ryleigh, who nods, eyes firm and assured. “It’s down to us now. Go. Gunnloda, Kendall - go.”

 

They watch as two escape pods launch free of Sovereign Host and float up towards the distant surface of the ocean. Another two from Primal Harmony follow, and just like that, they’re alone.

 

Clawflayer is still clinging to life in a little cleft in the ocean floor, it’s escaped the explosion without gaining more injuries. Dawnbringer bends down, grabs the grievously injured Kaiju, and begins to drag it towards the Breach. 

 

Safika and Ryleigh begin to plan.

\---

“So, what do you think? Can we make it?” Ryleigh asks.

 

They can hear Ravaphine and Nolanos murmuring in the background. Seirixori whispers, “ _ My fingers are crossed for you. _ ”

 

There’s a lull in the background conversation and then Ravaphine speaks clearly into comms, “ _ You’ll have to be fast. Very fast. The escape pods should rise in an almost straight line, so as long as you fall straight… yes. We think you can make it. _ ”

 

There’s silence. 

 

“Don’t worry, we’re coming home,” Ryleigh tries to assure everyone, but Safika can feel her doubt through the drift.

 

The Breach is before them, a glowing abyss, a portal to another dimension. Clawflayer is still twitching weakly, blood streaming from the gaping wound. 

 

“Are you ready for this?” Ryleigh asks. She has to ask, has to hear it from Safika’s lips, even though she already knows the answer. “We can’t go back, once we’ve stepped through.”

 

“I’m with you, every step of the way - to the very end.” Safika replies, and smiles that wonderful smile of hers. 

 

Dawnbringer steps out into the abyss and falls into another dimension. 

\---

The anteverse is unnatural. Things move in the distance upon pillars of rock and floating stone. Things that aren’t Kaiju, but their masters and creators. Dawnbringer drifts slowly down, releasing Clawflayer as she falls.

 

Safika and Ryleigh leave the drift and disconnect themselves from the operating mechanisms of the Jaeger. They climb down out of the conn-pod and into the heart of the Jaeger, where the nuclear core hums along steadily. 

 

Ryleigh crouches down by a hatch in the metal floor and swings it open. Within is a red handle and written in bold letters are the words:  **MANUAL SELF DESTRUCT. TIMER: 60 SECONDS.**

 

Safika steps over to Ryleigh and crouches down beside her. Together, they place their hands on the handle, raise it up and twist it 90 degrees clockwise, before pushing it down again.

 

“Self destruct sequence: activated,” the Jaeger’s A.I. informs them. “Immediate evacuation is advised.” Then the countdown starts. 

 

They race back up into the conn-pod. Ryleigh’s busy helping Safika get strapped into the operating mechanism, just as the warning lights start flashing. Their eyes lock and Ryleigh turns to look out the conn-pod’s visor - something is heading straight for them. 

 

She rushes back to the control panel and slams her palm into the right pilot evacuation button. Immediately Safika’s operating mechanism lifts her up to the ceiling of the conn-pod, placing her securely in one of the two evac pods. 

 

Ryleigh hears Safika screaming at her and feels her panic spread - Ryleigh isn’t in the evac pod yet. The steel doors slide shut with a hiss and then there’s a loud blast of the evac pod’s thrusters burning to life, shooting the pod up and away from the Jaeger.

 

“20 seconds left until self destruct sequence commences. Immediate evacuation is advised.” Says Dawnbringers A.I. 

 

Ryleigh flips a few switches and jams several buttons on Dawnbringer’s control panel. She activates the K-stunner warheads in Dawnbringer’s chest launcher at the monster coming towards them, hoping to slow it down long enough to give their evac pods some time to reach the exit of the anteverse. 

 

Ryleigh races back to the operating mechanism and straps herself in before pressing the left button. The operating mechanism lifts her up and deposits her in the evac pod as Dawnbringer’s A.I. announces, “10 seconds until destruct sequence commences.” 

 

_ Please let us make it, _ she thinks. _ Please let me make it. _

 

The thrusters roar to life as the escape pod lurches back up to the portal. There’s a faint roar from below that grows louder and louder and then - there’s silence. 

 

It’s silent for a long time, so long that Ryleigh taps the communicator attached to the side of her helmet, but there’s no response.  _ Don’t panic. _

 

She breathes in and out. Just like when she’s running, she finds that steady rhythm - in and out. And in and out. 

 

The evac pod begins to move, rocking around slowly. Then the top of it opens and there’s light, blinding light, so bright is burns her eyes. Ryleigh blinks and reaches up to take her helmet off. Swift hands assist her and as she sits up, shading her eyes from the sun, she sees Safika sitting astride the top of her evac pod. 

 

Ryleigh blinks again, wondering if this is perhaps some kind of afterlife.

 

Safika pulls Ryleigh out of the evac pod and into her arms. “I fucking can’t… how dare you,” she says into Ryleigh’s neck. “We  _ did _ it. We’re alive.”

 

Ryleigh clings to her partner, to Safika, and murmurs, “We did, it’s over.”

\---

They’re winched up into a Jumphawk. The other four are waiting for them, tired and weary and laughing with joy. They all fall into a sort of huddle, a hug shared between six people, and none of them talk for a little while. They’re all just happy each other’s alive. 

 

Malica’s arm is in a sling and Urrak is sporting a tremendous black eye. 

 

Gunnloda’s voice is filled with emotion as she says, “We all made it. And the Breach… it’s closed. You  _ did _ it.” 

 

Ryleigh glances back at her quickly, “Is it? Truly?”

 

“It just sealed right up,” Kendall informs them. “We were talking to Seirixori when it happened. Everyone started screaming and shouting in the background.” 

 

“You did it,” Gunnloda repeats.

 

“No,” Ryleigh says as she lets out a weary laugh. “We did. We all did it.”

 

And they have. They’ve pulled off the impossible. The Breach is closed and everyone is alive. Gunnloda and Kendall are alive. Urrak and Malica are alive. She and Safika are alive. They’ve done it. 

 

“ _ I knew you could do it, _ ” Seirixori’s voice echoes through comms. “ _ I knew that all of you could do it. Now, come home already! _ ”

\---

They return to the Shatterdome and a small crowd of doctors and medics greet them. 

 

Urrak announces that she’s fine and just wants a drink; Malica laughs and says she has a broken arm but a drink sounds like the perfect remedy. Seirixori comes flying out of nowhere and tackles Gunnloda to the ground, apologizing profusely afterward; Kendall is standing behind them laughing. Brimeia and Nolanos shake Ryleigh and Safika’s hand in congratulations. Ravaphine, with tears in her eyes, hugs Ryleigh and mumbles thanks to Safika. 

 

It’s a happy scene. It’s a happy scene and Ryleigh can’t quite believe this, that they’re here and the Breach is closed and everyone is alive. It’s the sort of the thing that defies belief. Apparently she has a habit of achieving the impossible, but she’s never done it alone. 

 

They’re whisked off to the medical bay, taken out of their drivesuits, and given a routine post-Kaiju fight checkup. The doctors seem amazed that Ryleigh and Safika’s interdimensional travel hasn’t resulted in any odd effects. Malica’s arm is splinted, Ryleigh’s told she has two fractured ribs - Safika and Seirixori both narrow their eyes at her simultaneously - but everyone is quite healthy, all things considered. 

 

There’s a debrief that’s mercifully short. Safika and Ryleigh sit side-by-side, holding hands. Occasionally, Safika leans over and makes a comment. “Why do they seem so amazed at us jumping through a portal?” Ryleigh shrugs, but Safika continues her commentary. “I think Urrak and Malica are about two seconds away from ripping off their clothes and…” Ryleigh giggles into her free hand as Safika winks at her and says, “you get the picture.” 

 

Safika and Ryleigh have to give a full account of what happened after they stepped through the portal. Ryleigh recounts to Gunnloda what occurred after she sent Safika’s evac pod to the surface. If Ryleigh had been paying attention, which she wasn’t, she would have noticed Safika stiffen at her words.

 

Urrak stops Ryleigh in the hallway after Gunnloda has the information she needs to fill out a report. Safika didn’t wait for her. 

 

“I was… I was wrong about ye.” Urrak shuffles and rubs the back of her neck. “Ye had my back out there and… ye fight good, Ry.” 

 

Ryleigh quirks an eyebrow at Urrak’s awkwardness, but smiles and presents her hand, “It was a pleasure to fight at your side, battle buddy.”

 

Urrak looks at Ryleigh’s hand for a moment before taking it and pulling her into a bone crushing hug. Ryleigh yelps in pain and Urrak immediately releases her. 

 

“Shit, Ry. Sorry, I didn’t mean t’ hurt ye.” 

 

Ryleigh’s eyes are watering. “It’s fine, Urrak. I appreciate the gesture.” 

 

With a crooked smile and an awkward wave, Urrak leaves. Ryleigh walks through the Shatterdome, where various parties and other celebratory activities are happening. 

 

She gets to her and Safika’s shared room, but before she opens the door, Ryleigh knows she’s not there. Ryleigh closes her eyes and reaches out with her mind.  _ Ghost drifting _ . Her brow furrows when she realizes where Safika is. 

\---

Ryleigh heads to the locker room, completely puzzled why Safika would be there. She enters a room lined with lockers and various articles of clothing, but there’s no one there.

 

She hears water running from the shower. As she enters the shower room, Ryleigh’s hit with a wave of emotions that don’t belong to her. She hesitantly calls out, “Safika?” 

 

There’s no reply and now worry floods Ryleigh’s heart. She walks to the only stall with a closed shower curtain and hears a sniffle come from behind it. “Safika… Safika, if you don’t answer me I’m coming in there, ok?” 

 

The only response she receives is sobbing.

 

Ryleigh pulls the curtain aside and finds Safika pressed against the title of the shower, knees pulled to her chest, and her head buried in her arms. It looks like she got halfway through showering, because there’s still traces of soap on her body where the water isn’t hitting her. 

 

Ryleigh walks into the stall, takes a seat on the shower floor still fully clothed, and pulls Safika into her lap. Safika clings to Ryleigh, her arms wrapping around the other woman’s shoulders, sobs wracking her body. 

 

“ _ It’s all right. You’re ok, Safika. I’m right here. I’ve got you. _ ” Ryleigh says in Elven, hoping the musical sounds of the language help soothe Safika. After several minutes, her sobs start to even out. 

 

“I imagined this so differently,” Safika lets out a watery laugh against Ryleigh’s chest. “The first time you saw me naked, I didn’t think it’d be here, like this…”

 

Ryleigh’s face grows instantly hot, she nervously responds, “You imagined… when we’d… I mean...” she shakes her head and is incredibly thankful Safika’s face is hidden from view, because  _ that’s _ not what’s important in this moment. 

 

Ryleigh reaches up and turns off the shower. She pulls the towel from its rack, wrapping it around the woman in her arms. “Don’t worry about that right now, just let me worry about you, ok? You’re shivering.” She presses a kiss to Safika’s forehead. 

 

Safika nods and says, “I never told you this but...” There’s pain in her voice. “When you arrived at the hospital after you fought Fusespitter, we knew that both of you were alive - you and Avery. We knew Avery wasn’t in good shape, but we also knew you had piloted alone for seventeen minutes.” 

 

Safika presses her hand more firmly to Ryleigh’s heart, as if to remind herself she’s there. “The doctors told me you wouldn’t live for long. They said some pilots managed to cling to life for an hour or so after piloting alone… like Rinan did. But then they slipped away - the trauma, or a seizure, or a haemorrhage.”

 

“And you… Ry, you said you wanted it all to end, and I was so afraid you’d give up on life.” Safika’s tears are flowing freely now, Ryleigh starts to gently brush them away, but Safika pulls her impossibly close instead. Her next words are muffled by Ryleigh’s chest, “Seventeen minutes. They told me that Gunnloda was an irregularity, and that you were going to die. I hoped that you would make it, but I feared that… that I’d lose you too. I counted each minute and I began to think: she’s going to make it. And you  _ did _ .” 

 

“I…I don’t remember that,” Ryleigh says and feels an ache in her chest, “but you never said anything.” Her stomach is queasy with concern and pain for Safika. 

 

Safika draws back to look at Ryleigh. “How was I supposed to say this to you? You were recovering. You were struggling. I wasn’t sure if you were healing, so I put my worries aside and focused on what you needed. Then we were given a Jaeger and a mission to save the world.”

 

Ryleigh takes Safika’s hand, intertwining their fingers. She gently squeezes her hand, urging her to continue. 

 

“We were training together. We were growing together. We were taking down the Kaiju and entering the breach together. Then you were launching my evac pod and I was watching you run to the control panel… I thought…” Safika’s eyes never leave Ryleigh’s and Ryleigh understands. 

 

“You thought I was acting the hero… that I was abandoning you… that you’d be alone.” Ryleigh breaks their eye contact, because she can’t stand the hurt she sees in Safika’s brown irises - hurt because of her. 

 

After a lengthy silence, Safika mumbles, “I’m fucking cold.”

 

Ryleigh stands, lifting Safika easily. She carries her the locker room, gently setting her down on a bench. Silently, Ryleigh hands Safika her clothes and goes to stand by the door. Safika dresses quickly and walks to the entrance. Ryleigh opens it for her and they walk back to their room in silence. 

\---

There are no words exchanged between them on the walk there. Ryleigh keeps rolling over their conversation, keeps thinking she needs to apologize, but no version of “I’m sorry” seems to fit the pain her partner was currently in. Safika sits on her bunk with her face in her hands. Ryleigh immediately starts to shed her wet clothing. She’s pulling on her pajama pants, standing there in her sports bra, when she decides she has to try.

 

“...I’m sorry,” Ryleigh apologizes. The words sound empty, just as she expected them to. “It doesn’t matter that I didn’t know… it still hurt you and Safika, I’m so sorry for hurting you.” 

 

There’s a silence that follows Ryleigh’s apology.

 

“Darling,” Ryleigh pauses, Safika looks up at her then, “we don’t have to fight our demons alone anymore, we’re in this together.” 

 

Safika doesn’t say a word as she crosses the space between them to stand directly in front of Ryleigh. She reaches out a hand to trace the angular scars that mark Ryleigh’s left arm, as if she’s making peace with the past. They’ve lost a lot, but they’ve found so much in each other. 

 

Safika’s lips look so soft and inviting. Her pupils are dilated, the black nearly consuming the brown of her irises. Ryleigh wraps her arms around Safika and whispers against her lips, “I love you - you’re… you’re  _ everything _ .” 

 

Safika’s hand moves from Ryleigh’s scarred arm to cup the back of her neck, bringing her closer as she presses their mouths together. A sigh catches in Safika’s throat as she drives forward, deepening the kiss. 

 

Ryleigh draws Safika’s bottom lip into her mouth, sucking lightly. Safika presses forward again, gently pushing Ryleigh backward until she’s up against the wall. As Ryleigh’s back hits the wall, she releases Safika’s lip to take a sharp inhale of breath, and Safika lowers her lips to Ryleigh’s neck. 

 

“I want you,” Safika whispers into Ryleigh’s shoulder as she presses a gentle kiss to it. Ryleigh freezes at the admission. Safika feels her stiffen and pulls away just enough to look into Ryleigh’s eyes, “Talk to me…”

 

Ryleigh’s eyes are filled with worry as struggles to find the right words.“I… I’ve never… this isn’t something…” 

 

“I know, Ry.” Safika says softly as she rests their foreheads together, “I’ve been in your head, remember? ...I just - I need to know what your boundaries are, what’s ok with you.”

 

“I’m not really sure what they are...” Ryleigh mumbles out embarrassedly. 

 

“There’s nothing to be embarrassed about, Ry.” Safika pulls back and takes Ryleigh’s face in her hands, “I love you.  _ You _ . Gods, I’ve been in love with you for a while, so I won’t say I haven’t thought about us, or that I don’t want us to be more intimate, but we can do whatever you’re comfortable with, we can learn what your boundaries are together.” Safika tilts her head to catch Ryleigh’s eyes, “All right?”

 

Ryleigh relaxes and wraps her arms around Safika. She tilts her head to meet Safika’s lips. The moment their lips meet it’s like sparks turning to flames. Without warning, Ryleigh grasps the back of Safika’s thighs and lifts her. Safika’s legs instantly wrap around Ryleigh’s waist. 

 

Ryleigh switches their positions so Safika is pressed against the wall, she uses her free hand to trail up Safika’s side. She shudders in Ryleigh’s arms as her thumb brushes along the side of her breast. Safika’s hand on Ryleigh’s back grips tightly, her nails cutting into Ryleigh’s exposed skin. 

 

Ryleigh breaks their kiss to press lewd, burning open-mouthed kisses along Safika’s neck. She finds a particular spot on the column of Safika’s throat that has the other woman dropping her head back against the wall with a groan. Ryleigh presses the entirety of her body into Safika and she reveles in the soft whimper Safika makes. Sparks snap in Ryleigh’s mind at the sound. 

 

Panting, Ryleigh lifts her head to look into Safika’s eyes and whispers, “You’re overdressed.”

 

“Fuck, Ry,” Safika manages to say, trembling slightly as Ryleigh pulls her shirt up, trailing her hands up Safika’s sides, thumbing her hips, her rib cage, and continuing upward until the offending clothing is laying on the floor.

 

Safika’s head drops back, her eyes closing and lips parting as she inhales and expels rapid, shallow breaths. Ryleigh lowers her head, setting to work beneath Safika’s jaw, along her throat, her collarbone, and shivering at the way Safika’s hum of approval vibrates against her lips.

 

Safika’s buries one of her hands in the wild mess of blonde braids, the other clawing a fiery path down the ridges of Ryleigh’s abdomen muscles and finally hovering over the waistband of Ryleigh’s pants. Ryleigh’s eyes fly open, her breath catching at the movement.

 

Without further ado, Ryleigh carries them to the bunk, guiding them down onto the mattress - where they spend the next several hours figuring out where Ryleigh’s boundaries are. 

\---

Days pass. The celebrations end, and the war is over and it’s… hard to adjust to. There are physicals and appointments with psychiatrists. There’s more debriefs and a press conference where they all wear their formal uniforms and receive awards. 

 

Months pass. Ryleigh and Safika still have nightmares and, as bad as they are, there’s a certain comfort in knowing there won’t be any more Kaiju - that they’ve triumphed, the Breach is sealed and the Kaiju can’t threaten anyone anymore.

 

Years pass. Ryleigh still runs for solitude and calm because in the act of running, there’s a steady rhythm to be found. Left foot, right foot. Breathe in, breathe out. One two one two one two. Ryleigh and Safika, they still run together, side by side, in perfect synchronization. Together, they found balance in world filled with chaos - they discovered equilibrium. And that’s something beautiful. 

  
  



End file.
